Nonpoint’s Elias Soriano said it best: “middle fingers to the sky!”
That was the mood at Historic Crew Stadium as Sonic Temple opened on day two beneath a steady drizzle of rain. Grey clouds cloaked the festival grounds and rainwater soaked the grass – soon to be mud beneath a trample of boots — mere hours before festivalgoers were due to march through the entry gates.
But the spirit of heavy music persists come rain or come shine, and Fuming Mouth didn’t hesitate to take to Sanctuary Stage as the opening act for the second day. Growing puddles rippled with reverb, and throngs of people came to see openers that included Point North as the first on the Temple Stage and I See Stars just next door on the Sanctuary Stage. There was an air of excitement that the weather clearly hadn’t dampened and an electric energy that grew as the number of attendees grew in leaps and bounds from Day One’s turnout.
The rain began to ease as afternoon approached, and perhaps it was Nonpoint’s unrelenting fury that chased the unsavory weather away from Historic Crew Stadium, because these metallers left it all on the Temple Stage. Although clouds remained, Soriano did not hesitate to come screaming onto the stage like a wrecking ball of metallic chaos. Flanked by guitarists Jaysin Zeilstra and Rasheed Thomas, this act instantly enthralled. “Victim” had the crowd bouncing with their hands in the air, and Zeilstra delivered smiles as he ran to the edge of the stage between Soriano’s jumping. The whole band was eager to see the crowd tear through hit after hit, and brought absolutely “Ruthless” endurance for an early afternoon set.
Dirty Honey was next on the Temple Stage, and while these Californians might have slowed down the pace, they did so with their delightfully sultry brand of hard rock. The rich velvet and gold embroidery of their stage outfits caught the little sun peeking through dense clouds, but you’d never have guessed it was overcast from their orange-tinted sunglasses. Marc LaBelle was all smiles as he crooned his way through songs of love, heartbreak, and California sun. He dedicated “Heartbreaker” to the ladies in the crowd, but proved himself the real heartbreaker as the band drew its afternoon set to a close after just 40 minutes of crowd-pleasing jams like “California Dreamin’” and “Won’t Take Me Alive.” Their sound is hand-crafted for stadium anthems, and Dirty Honey delivered an impressive ode to rock that sounded rich and lush even on the massive stadium speakers.
The smooth serenade of Dirty Honey’s relentless charm filled the stadium, but just over at the Cathedral Stage Terror was busy encouraging the crowd to an enthused violence, proving that the hardcore flame is still alive and well. This is just one of many such juxtapositions available due to Sonic Temple’s diversely heavy lineup, the festival primed with four stages to please hard rock and extreme metal fans alike.
The latter fans were certainly pleased by Anthrax’s appearance on the Temple Stage. If you think you know what high octane sounds like, think again: The latter fans were certainly pleased by Anthrax put on an intense and punishing set that threatened to bring down the heavens, and brought with them a heavy legacy that is rivaled by no other. Led by Joey Belladonna – sporting Anthrax’s own tour shirt – these thrash metal veterans lit a fire under Sonic Temple and caused the nascent mosh pits to swell to raging seas of sweat and screaming. The crowd was eager to participate, singing along and putting their fists in the air for thrash classics like “Metal Thrashing Mad,” “Caught in a Mosh” and beloved covers like Joe Jackson’s “Got the Time” for a delightfully balanced and equally punishing set.
With more than forty years of thrashing madness behind them, longtime members Charlie Benante and Scott Ian tore through the speed-fueled fury that granted them a seat among the Big Four of the genre, joined by the towering presence of former – and now fill in bassist – Dan Lilker and the fluid riffs of the ever-headbanging guitarist Jon Donais. Although these pioneers of the genre had an early afternoon set, they performed with the spirit of a headlining act, and Belladonna incessantly moved from one side of the stage to the other with enduringly youthful vigor.
If festivalgoers stepped outside the tempting embrace of the festival’s stages – with at least one act performing throughout the day across the four stages – one would find a wealth of art and unique merchandise awaiting them. After all, Sonic Temple touts itself as an arts & music festival, so it is only fitting that there is art to accompany the music. The artistic offerings included both numerous booths for independent artist vendors and live paintings occurring on the obelisk-like standees near the main entrance. One such artist, Terry Urban, was busy adding flourishes to a Limp Bizkit portrait with swathes of colorful paint as Anthrax rattled the earth. Other artists hovered above the crowd in scissor lifts, cans of spray paint in hand, as they penned tributes to Sonic Temple in vibrant shades of orange and white.
Art of all kinds was abounding on stage as well as among the festival vendors, the former including the exciting musicianship from Kublai Khan TX. With a round of guttural cries, vocalist Matt Honeycutt “ARF ARF”-ed his way into the biggest mosh pit that the Sanctuary Stage had seen at that point in the day. Backed by the relentless support of drummer Isaac Lamb, his sound rivaling the early hardcore brand of thunder, these metalcore entertainers took Sonic Temple to new heights.
Dirty Honey weren’t the only heartthrob of the day. The air was peppered with cries of “I love you!” as Black Veil Brides’s Andy Biersack climbed the Cathedral Stage with a knowing smile on his lips. The stage had props and set pieces, giving an intimate and exciting texture to an otherwise massive festival. This decorative ensemble was supported by the band’s blood-red makeup, painted thick across their necks in grisly mimicry of slit throats. Stage makeup aside, Biersack happily smiled and sang his way through a medley of Black Veil Brides's classics and new festival staples. Jake Pitts worked each side of the stage with a similarly coy smile, while Biersack belted out the spirited “Rebel Love Song” to a crowd happy to sing along. Biersack is a man who knew who he was singing for, and he brought it all when he sustained a piercing scream through the band’s new single “Bleeders.” The set closed out with the band’s all-time hit “In the End,” preceded by the anthemic “Knives and Pens.” While many were busy watching Biersack draw shrill cries from the crowd as he prowled across the stage, one would be remiss not to watch drummer Christian Coma keep a steady hand as he drummed with demanding precision.
A different kind of comfort food was presented by the hard rockers Seether, again at the Temple Stage. Melancholic anthems like “Fine Again” and “Broken” – the latter accompanied by Corey Lowery on acoustic guitar – filled a growing crowd with frontman Shaun Morgan’s soulful cries. “Remedy” closed out their set as a real stadium-rock classic with percussionist John Humphrey’s steady hand giving the audience a rhythm to nod along to.
There was an equal amount of soul on display over on the Sanctuary stage, this time by the aptly named Soulfly, introduced by Sirius XM and Liquid Metal ambassador Jose Mangin as "one of the bands he listened to the most during his younger years as they hailed from his state of Arizona". Max Cavalera lives for the stage, and that much was clear as he roared on with the opening “Back to the Primitive.” It certainly wasn’t heavenly grace that parted the clouds, but nonetheless, the sun truly shone for the first time that day on Soulfly’s crushing set. The audience was invited to participate in singing to “Bleed,” and encouraged to mosh during “Jumpdafuckup.” Bassist Mike Leon was living for the limelight, fingers steady as he sent each heavy note up into the stratosphere, all while emoting enthusiastically. Equally enthusiastic was the senior Cavalera’s son, Zyon Cavalera, punishing the drum kit with hit after heavy hit.
Tempering this extreme rage with a similar, parallel fire, the Cathedral Stage became a temporary home for any homesick punk rockers of the early 2000s. Sum 41 may have just recently released their album “Heaven :X: Hell” in March of this year, but took the festival set back to a nonstop roll of their classic hits. From “Over My Head (Better Off Dead)” and “Walking Disaster” to the singalong “In Too Deep,” feet were tapping and hands raised to the sky as the crowd cheered along to these familiar anthems. Deryck Whibley guided the audience verse by verse, bringing the same energy to the band he has for more than twenty years, and giving a fitting prelude to the band’s final tour. Guitarist Dave Baksh played into the band’s boisterous attitude, jumping along towards the front of the stage while proceeding through a spirited, punk-tinged cover of “We Will Rock You.” The band also featured one of the more interesting set pieces of the day, a gigantic inflatable skeleton with red eyes and beckoning fingers that towered over Whibley and Co.
Just a short walk from each other, Falling in Reverse and Atreyu took to their respective stages simultaneously, the former on the lead Temple Stage and the latter at the Sanctuary Stage. Atreyu brought some of their heaviest fare to bat, Brandon Saller howling his way through “Gone” while Marc McKnight carried its heavy bass notes. Other tracks from their latest album, “The Beautiful Dark of Life,” also made the setlist cut, including “Drowning.” Although it was still light out as evening began to fall over Historic Crew Stadium, Atreyu filled the stage with plumes of smoke and flashing strobe lights. This illumination placed guitarist Dan Jacobs in the spotlight as he tore through high-speed hits from “Falling Down” to “Blow.” Saller readily engaged with the crowd that had gathered, keeping them close to the barricade even as Rise Against prepared to go on the Cathedral Stage a short walk away.
Falling in Reverse had a similarly impressive setup on stage as they returned to Sonic Temple once more, this time including pyrotechnics as a part of their performance. Although the dynamic throes of “The Drug in Me is You” and the heavy atmosphere of “Popular Monster” let frontman Ronnie Radke entertain with the chops of a seasoned performer, the band’s set ground to a halt after “Watch the World Burn.” Radke stopped “Ronald” in its tracks once it became clear that guitarist Max Georgiev and drummer Luke Holland had been burnt by the pyrotechnics of the proceeding song, the flames knocked off course by unexpected gusts of wind. Although it took three times for the song to hit its stride, both Georgiev and Holland made it to the end before receiving medical attention from on-site medical staff.
Rise Against was the final act on the Cathedral Stage, and their lights illuminated the masses as night fell in earnest. Their fiery brand of punk rock opened with “Re-Education (Through Labor)” and gave way to the relentless “Satellite.” Tim McIlrath was similarly watching over the audience from his place high atop the stage, smiling and working the crowd alongside the charismatic lead guitarist Zach Blair. Rise Against joined Seether in featuring an acoustic song, this time being Rise Against’s comforting “Swing Life Away.” Heartfelt cries from the festival’s attendees brought “Make It Stop (September’s Children)” to life with thousands of voices singing along. There is little question that Rise Against has rightfully made a name for themselves in the rock scene, and this was evidenced by the masses of festivalgoers singing along to every word that rose to the heavens from McIlrath’s lips. The communal celebration of the band’s music made Rise Against’s set one of the most exciting of the day.
Code Orange just might be the heaviest thing to come out of Pittsburgh since the steel mills largely shuttered their doors. This former quintet has recently elevated its live act through the addition of drummer Max Portnoy, freeing frontman Jami Morgan to wreak havoc at the front of the stage as though he were “Out For Blood.” Morgan was accompanied in this endeavor by vocalist and guitarist Reba Meyers, with Meyers against the monitors as she shredded through the demanding hardcore fare that Code Orange has become so famous for. From “Drowning In It” to “The Mask of Sanity Slips,” Morgan was intent on inciting the crowd to an impassioned violence, calling for both an immense wall of death and a circle pit that nearly engulfed the entirety of the Citadel Stage.
As the dust settled from Code Orange’s fury, it left Avatar to the Sanctuary Stage and the original Misfits on the main Temple Stage to bring Day Two to a close.
Sonic Temple 2024 marked Avatar’s return to the festival, having attended last year and performing an exciting but early-evening set. But as the masses packed in tight to the barricade at the Sanctuary Stage and even spilled over into the nearby Citadel Stage, it was clear that these Swedish circus metallers had more than earned their placement at the top of the bill. Complete with elaborate stage costuming, set pieces, and pyrotechnics, Johannes Eckerström embodied a sinister ringleader as he marched across the stage and effortlessly commanded the attention of thousands. “Dance Devil Dance” and “The Eagle Has Landed” gave ample space for mosh pits to form and dozens of crowd surfers to make their pilgrimage to the barricade. Adding to an already dynamic set, Eckerström stunned the audience as a piano was rolled onto the stage and he delicately played and sung his way through the moving ballad “Tower.” It was impossible to look away from these well-rehearsed performers, as John Alfredsson tore up the drums with unparalleled expressiveness and bassist Henrik Sandelin headbanged through song after song. Their on-stage chemistry was as engaging as it was captivating. Every part of Avatar’s set coalesced in a brilliant display of musicianship and art, and they proved just how they had fought their way to well-earned fame with their extraordinary brand of metal music.
The Temple Stage closers and headlining act are a name that heavy music fans will know well, none other than the Original Misfits. With a setlist that boasted two dozen songs, including an encore, these headliners proved themselves punk rock royalty. From frontman and storied musician Glenn Danzig to the new addition of Slayer’s Dave Lombardo behind the kit, the high-energy performance they brought to Sonic Temple’s Day Two headlining spot proved that the Misfits continue to live up to their name and the legacy as more than just a mere comeback act. But even as the lights dimmed on the Misfits’ set, it was clear that Sonic Temple’s weekend was just beginning.
Special thanks to Samantha Buckman for her writing contributions to this article.
